A Guide to Hiking Cerro Chirripó, Costa Rica

Summitting Cerro Chirripó was undoubtedly a highlight of our trip to Costa Rica. At 3,820m*, it’s Costa Rica’s highest mountain – and the highest mountain either of us had attempted by some margin. Whilst it’s… More

Cloudbridge Nature Reserve, San Gerardo de Rivas

Getting from A to B in Costa Rica takes time, and it’s worth factoring this in when planning your itinerary. Our first stop was San Gerardo de Rivas, a 150km-ish journey from the capital San… More

Three Weeks in… Costa Rica

Costa Rica is a country of contrasts. There are sweeping, sandy beaches, smoking volcanoes and mystical cloud forests. (And that’s before we get to the dense rainforests brimming with wildlife, the coastal mangroves, and the… More

Things 2023 Taught Me

Each year, unintentionally, feels busier than the last. 2023 was no exception. Amidst qualifying as a teacher and months of job-hunting, we adopted a cat*, spent three glorious weeks exploring Costa Rica (a belated honeymoon) and added a couple more Munros to the tally (Beinn Ghlas and Ben Lawers). I published a grand total of seven posts – and I have to admit, I’m surprised it was that many as the blog well and truly fell by the wayside last year. On top of the full-time job, I’m also studying part-time with The Open University. I’m juggling the two fairly well so far (touch wood), but I wish I’d done some beginners’ Spanish modules as part of my degree, as that would have made getting dual-qualification considerably easier for me now.

*Technically, two – but not at the same time. We were told the first cat was an indoor cat, but it quickly became evident that wasn’t the case – and as the cat hadn’t been neutered when it was younger, it was in the habit of spraying to mark its territory. We now have lovely pee-soaked wallpaper in the living room. To cut a long story short, we took that cat back and adopted one that was an indoor cat.

Without further ado, here are a selection of things 2023 taught me…

Beinn Ghlas and Ben Lawers

June’s heatwave called for some more Munros: Beinn Ghlas and Ben Lawers, both of which sit to the north of Loch Tay within Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve. We set off early, mindful of the temperatures forecast for later in the day, and reached the car park opposite the trailhead shortly after 08.00.

Christmas in the Caribbean: Snapshots from Barbados

Christmas, for me, is usually all about eating mince pies, rewatching festive classics like Home Alone and Love, Actually, spending time with family and friends, and wishing for snow.

Last year was rather different.

As my sister was working in Martinique (an overseas department of France), my family had planned to visit her there at Christmas. But if there’s one thing France loves more than a jour férié (bank holiday) it’s a grève (strike). Striking borders on a national sport in France (and here in the UK too, over the past year or so, it would seem), and the more likely than not scenario of an Air France strike over the festive period led my parents to opt for a different Caribbean island instead: Barbados.

Ben Nevis via the Càrn Mòr Dearg (CMD) Arête

When we first climbed Ben Nevis, back in 2018, we did so via the well-trodden Mountain Track. On this trip, though, we decided to try the route via the Càrn Mòr Dearg Arête (which comes with a bonus Munro, in the form of Càrn Mòr Dearg). Normally, I write detailed notes of our hikes in my notepad afterwards, but it appears that on this occasion I forgot to do so. Here’s hoping my memory does this hike justice!

Scotland’s ‘Small Isles’: 3 Days Exploring Rùm National Nature Reserve

Together, Rùm, Eigg, Muck and Canna (plus a few even smaller islands and a handful of skerries) make up Scotland’s ‘Small Isles’, sandwiched between the Isle of Mull and the Isle of Skye. The next leg of our trip was a three-day trip to Rum – which almost fell apart before it had even started.

Visiting Ulva: A Hidden(ish) Gem off the Isle of Mull

Ulva is a magical place. On paper, it’s tiny: around 7.5 miles long, and just 2.5 miles wide. But what it might lack in land area, it makes up for in community spirit and rugged, unspoilt natural beauty.

Isle of Mull: Ben More

Ben More is Mull’s only Munro, but it’s one of my favourite Munros to date. (It’s also not to be confused with the other Ben More, which is 100-odd miles to the east in Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park.) We had clear skies, balmy temperatures, excellent views and the path mostly to ourselves – a recipe for an enjoyable hike, as far as I’m concerned. We followed the quiet road out to Dhiseig, where there’s a grassy verge with space for about two dozen cars. If (like us) you’ve not got a 4WD, don’t drive too far onto the verge – in wetter weather, you might find it tricky to rejoin the road.

Memories of Mull

Life has been busy lately*, and this little blog ended up hibernating for longer than I anticipated. With each passing week, it became harder to summon the motivation or energy to write, so blogging fell down the to-do list and then off it completely as other things (mostly lesson planning) took priority. So, it’s time to pick up where things on here left off: with last July’s trip to the Highlands. First up: snippets from our time on the glorious Isle of Mull, off the west coast of Scotland.

*We eloped in the Highlands, bought our first house and adopted an adorable ball of floof (aka a cat), all in the space of the last six months.

Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park: Cruach Àrdrain and Beinn Tulaichean

When I sat down to write this post, I struggled to find words that would do Cruach Àrdrain and Beinn Tulaichean justice. We had incredible views along the entire route – amongst the best I’ve ever had on a hike. I celebrated another birthday in the hills. Throw in a borderline unhealthy dose of adrenalin (read: sheer panic) when we underestimated how steep Cruach Àrdrain was and found ourselves in a bit of a pickle on the NE slope, and we had the recipe for an unforgettable trip.

Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park: Stob Binnein and Ben More

When it came to choosing a few Munros to bag over the course of my birthday weekend, it didn’t take us long to decide where to go: Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park. We’ve explored embarrassingly little of it since moving to Edinburgh, but are (very) slowly rectifying that. Past Balquhidder, there’s a cluster of four Munros that can be combined into a two-day/one-night circular route. We tackled Stob Binnein and Ben More on the Saturday (this post), and Cruach Àrdrain and Beinn Tulaichean on the Sunday (stay tuned for those two).